Fallen Angel and Risen Demon

Stan the Undead III

Angela lifted a hand toward Alex, but he was already off running. Angela's hand slumped to the ground. She let out a sigh before getting up on her own, whispering, "Well, that was kinda rude."

The soul was trying to run as quickly as he could. Since he was no longer in a rotting human body, he was much faster than the average human. However, Alex was much, much faster than even the fastest of humans. He managed to catch up easily, his sword raised to strike.

The soul of the man fell forward by accident, causing Alex to miss the s***h. He stood there, looking down at the human who was rolled up into a ball and cowering in fear. Alex crouched down, asking him, "Why do you fear death?"

"What kind of question is that?" He screamed.

"I don't believe that you fear death," Alex said to him. "I think you've been trying to cling to life."

"What's the difference?" He yelled, swinging his fists upwards. "You've probably never experienced what it's like to live! How can you say something like that?"

Alex just leaned out of range, completely avoiding the punches. He shook his head, telling him, "I have lived before. I wasn't born in Hell."

He tilted his head. "If you could call what I did 'living'."

Alex stared at the ground, saying, "Well, living was nice, I guess, but eventually the end arrives. It's okay to cling onto something with all your heart, it's fine to want to avoid it, but when it comes, let it be known that you did what you could."

"Did you live a life you enjoyed?" Alex asked.

The man paused. "But my wife! My daughter! My son!"

"Did you live an emotional life?" Alex asked a different question. "A life with ups and downs? A life you could hold your chest up high and say that you've lived?"

The soul was silent.

"I'm sorry you had to hear about your wife in the manner that you did," Alex continued. "But while you were alive, could you say you enjoyed your life?"

Angela appeared some distance away, staring at Alex from afar.

The soul slowly nodded, getting to his feet. He tried making eye contact with Alex, but he was staring off to the side instead. Alex extended a hand, telling him, "No matter where you end up, just remember your humanity."

Alex slashed the soul with his sword, sending it to the Judgement Hall. He let out a sigh before trying to return to Hell. The task was complete, he just wanted to go back to his room and do a whole lot of nothing. Angela rushed to his side, teasing, "You totally wanted to strike him from behind just now."

Alex pushed her arm aside when she tried reaching out to him. Angela stared at her own arm before asking him, "Uh... Did I do something?"

"The manner in which you handle souls is simply unacceptable," Alex told her. "That is not how an Angel should behave."

"Oh yeah?" Angela crossed her arms. "And what you did isn't how a Demon should behave either!"

"An Angel should be kind and warm, let them feel accepted into the afterlife, not destroy their whole perception of reality," Alex scolded. "An uneasy mind can lead to insanity for over a century!"

"Meh," Angela shrugged, looking off to the side.

She then pointed at Alex, saying, "A Demon should be ruthless and relentless when chasing a soul! They should incite insanity and craziness as punishment to those that attempt to run! Seriously, if you don't make them pay, everyone is gonna start doing it. You have to face some facts, my love-"

Angela got close to Alex's face. "Not everybody deserves a happy end."

"And not everybody deserves a bad end," Alex stared directly into Angela's eyes.

Angela squealed and grabbed Alex's face. Meanwhile, Alex was mildly confused by the situation. Angela commented, "What is this? Why are your eyes so pretty? Oh my gosh, I want this!"

She leaned in much too close to Alex, causing him to push her away. Angela laughed, saying to him, "I just want to rip those eyes out and store them in a jar! They're so pretty!"

As if the previous conversation never happened, Angela asked Alex, "So, when's the next time you'll be visiting the Living World? I'm technically not allowed into Hell, and you're not allowed into Heaven, maybe we can compromise? Go on a date?"

"I'll say this once," Alex said firmly. "I don't want to meet you ever again."

"Nope!" Angela stuck her tongue out. "By the way, can I know you n-"

He vanished from the Living World and back into Hell.

"-ame?"

Angela just stood there, her arms folded. She tapped her chin, trying to think of where she had gone wrong. She started talking to herself, "Does he hate me?"

Alex was back in Hell and the games going on in the Demon district were still ongoing. He left his house with both of his blades, the golden wings which acted as his key into Heaven remained by the side of his bed. He slipped past the notice of several other Demons in order to make his way to the Fields of Punishment. There, just as Angela had said, were mailboxes, one for every Demon in Hell.

Alex searched for his mailbox, finding it to be rather full.

He experimented by trying to open another Demon's mailbox to no avail. Only he could open his own mailbox. he shovelled out the many letters sent to him. Each letter was white and with gold touch at the edges. It was a letter from Heaven, and it was obvious that the letters were sent to him by Angela.

Sixty-one letters, just as she had said.

He considered throwing them into the fiery pits of Hell but decided to keep them instead, making sure to bring all sixty-one letters into his house. Sitting on his bed, he opened each according to chronological order to read them.

The first letter:

'Hey there! Hi, I'm the Demon you swapped places with. I've heard absolutely nothing about you, but I've seen you about three times on the job. You looked really cool! Our situation's kind of tough since you aren't allowed in Heaven and all, but we can meet in the Living World! Write back! My name's Angela! Angela Lovers.'

"Angela... Lovers...?" Alex muttered the name to himself.

He set the letter side, then stared at the other sixty letters the exact same person had sent to him over the course of several decades. He sighed and slowly got through each letter.